Now Commenting On:

Petersen's walk-off triple powers Marlins

Email

Print

By Joe Frisaro
/
MLB.com |

JUPITER, Fla. -- Miguel Cabrera turned in a three-hit game against his former club, but the Marlins overcame the slugger's big night as Bryan Petersen hit a two-run walk-off triple in a 6-5 win over Team Venezuela in front of 2,719 at Roger Dean Stadium.

Chris Coghlan capped his four-hit night by lacing a single to left field, and Zack Cox moved him over to third on a single to right. After Jake Marisnick struck out, Petersen laced the game-winning triple to center field.

"Like we've been talking, really, the last couple of weeks of guys battling, and grinding and never giving up," manager Mike Redmond said. "From a young team, and a young group of players, it doesn't matter to me that this Spring Training. That shows the character of the guys on this team, and the character of these young players."

Cabrera, last year's American League MVP and Triple Crown winner, put Team Venezuela ahead with a two-run home run in the seventh inning. Cabrera snapped a 3-3 tie with his two-out, two-run blast off Jordan Smith. Omar Infante, who walked to open the inning, was on third when Cabrera crushed his no-doubt blast to deep left.

Along with his homer, Cabrera also had two doubles and drove in four runs.

Marlins lefty Wade LeBlanc, a candidate for the fifth-starter's spot, labored to keep the ball down in the zone, and Venezuela made him play, scoring three runs of him in 2 2/3 innings.

"It's like a lineup you draw up on 'MLB The Show,'" LeBlanc said of Venezuela's stacked batting order. "Even if I'm facing a college team, I think tonight, I was missing with everything. If I threw over the plate, it was up. The only positive I can find is I got a good amount of ground balls for as few outs that I got."

Venezuela starter Carlos Zambrano, who was with the Marlins last year, threw two scoreless innings.

The exhibition started about 2 1/2 hours after Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez died.

Venezuelan minister of baseball Hector Rodriguez informed the team that it focus on the game and leave politics aside.

Team Venezuela came out aggressively, scoring three runs, and capitalizing on a throwing error by Miami third baseman Chone Figgins.

Elvis Andrus singled sharply to center on LeBlanc's second pitch. The inning escalated when Figgins threw wildly on Asdrubal Cabrera's chopper to third. Venezuela had runners on second and third for Miguel Cabrera, who drove in two with a double to right-center. Carlos Gonzalez's single to left made it, 3-0.

The Marlins pulled even with a three-run fifth inning. Coghlan singled to start the rally and Figgins walked. Kevin Mattison's single loaded the bases, and then Juan Pierre delivered a two-run, ground-rule double. And Donovan Solano drove in the tying run on a groundout.

Up next: On Wednesday, the Marlins will give another fifth-starter candidate a look. Tom Koehler makes his first Grapefruit League start as he faces the Cardinals at Roger Dean Stadium. Jake Westbrook will start for St. Louis, the home team in the 1:05 p.m. ET contest. Third baseman Placido Polanco is expected to return to Miami's lineup. He's been out since Saturday with low back tightness.

Joe Frisaro is a reporter for MLB.com. He writes a blog, called The Fish Pond. Follow him on Twitter @JoeFrisaro. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.